Oil Crashes Below $45 For The First Time In 6 Years

The price of West Texas Intermediate oil slumped below $45 for
the first time since 2009 on Tuesday.

On Monday, WTI fell 5%, and as of 8:05 am ET on Tuesday it was
already down more than 3%. Near 9:15 am ET, WTI had pulled back
some of its losses and was trading near $45.30.

The latest drop in oil follows comments by the oil minister of
the United Arab Emirates
reported in The Wall Street Journal. Suhail Mohamed
Faraj al-Mazrouei told an energy event in Abu Dhabi that OPEC
could not "continue protecting a certain price. That is not the
only aim of OPEC."

Here's the intraday chart of WTI on Tuesday, which shows the
bounce off its morning lows, though you can still see the steady
collapse to new lows overnight.

FinViz

And the last year of WTI prices is just a stunning chart.

FinViz

Brent, the international benchmark for oil prices, is just a
little higher at $46.95, after nearly a week ago falling below
$50 per barrel for the first time in six years.

It's been very choppy so far Tuesday:

Investing.com

The Journal also carried a comment from Thina
M. Saltvedt, at Nordea Bank: "We are still
very much sentiment-driven and the sentiment will continue to be
negative as long as there is no change in production ... Oil is
still piling up."

The fall in oil prices is having a dramatic effect around the
world. Producer nations like Russia and Venezuela are suffering,
and the previously booming US shale industry is also likely to be
tested if prices stay low.

The plunge has helped to push the eurozone into deflation for the
first time since 2009, but consumers everywhere are likely to
drive up consumption a little as falling fuel prices increase
their disposable income.